according to him, and was also disciple of Peter, of whom he says, in his epistle," Mark, my son, saluteth you."

9. Upon Acts xv. 13. This James, appointed bishop of Jerusalem by the Lord, was son of Joseph the carpenter, and brother of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.'

10. I need not put down the prefaces to St. Paul's several epistles, in which are observed the places where they were written, sometimes right, sometimes wrong.

m

11. Upon those words of Col. iv. 16, " the epistle from Laodicea," is a note of Photius. Some say, ' this was not an epistle of Paul to them, but from them to him; for he does not say, the epistle to the Laodiceans, but the epistle from Laodicea.'

12. In the argument or preface to the epistle of James, it is said to be written to those of the twelve tribes scattered abroad, who had believed in our Lord Jesus Christ.

13. The argument to the first epistle of Peter says,' it is written to the believing Jews scattered abroad in several places.'

14. Upon 2 Pet. iii. 1, he observes, as I understand him, to this effect: Hence we perceive that Peter wrote only two epistles.'

15. In a note upon the beginning of St. John's second epistle he says, 'Some had thought that this and the following epistle were not written by John the apostle, but by another of the same name, who calls himself Elder.' Our author, however, receives both these, as well as the first.

16. Jude's epistle is said to be written to believers. 17. In a note upon the first epistle to the Corinthians, the Revelation is quoted as written by John the evangelist. 18. As a farther proof, that Ecumenius received the book of the Revelation, I refer to an anecdote, published by Montfauçon, of which he speaks very magnificently in his preface to the Coislinian library; but when he sets about translating the passage, he says, it is written in so obscure a style as to be scarce intelligible.

1 P. 122. C.

" T. ii. p. 438.

m T. ii. p. 146. B.
• Ib. p. 479.

* Εκ τέτων μανθανομεν, δυο τας πασας είναι το Πετρε επιτολας. p. 548. D. 9 P. 605. P. 619. A.

* Ο ευαγγελισης Ιωαννης φησιν εν τη Αποκαλυψει. Τ. i. p. 578. C. Vigesimum quartum ex eodem codice prodit, estque longe præstantius opusculum Ecumenii, episcopi Triccæ in Thessaliâ. Notes velim, antehac, cujus civitatis episcopus esset Ecumenius, ignotum fuisse. Is auctoritate patrum, ineluctabilibusque argumentis, probat Apocalypsin esse veram et canonicam scripturam. Præf. Sequens autem opusculum stylo

u

It is said to be the Synopsis of the labours of the blessed Ecumenius, bishop of Tricca, upon the Revelation of John the divine;' and it begins in this manner: That this writing is the mystical instruction of the disciple who rested in the bosom of Jesus, and is divinely inspired, and useful, as has been indisputably proved; and that it is not spurious, as some have profanely said, but a genuine writing of the son of thunder: and the author then proceeds to argue this from the testimonies of Athanasius, Basil, Gregory, Methodius, Cyril of Alexandria, Hippolytus, and from other considerations.

19. I shall now make a few remarks. First, from the passage above cited from the Commentary upon the epistle to the Corinthians, it appears to be probable, that Ecumenius received the book of the Revelation; and this passage may be allowed to afford some additional evidence. Nevertheless, secondly, this writer being unknown and anonymous, what he says cannot be admitted as full proof that Ecumenius ever wrote a Commentary upon the Revelation. Thirdly, the argument for the genuineness of the Revelation, here ascribed to Ecumenius, is much the same with what is to be found in the prefaces of Andrew, andy Arethas, to their Commentaries upon that book.

CHAP. CLXIII.

THEOPHYLACT.

1. THEOPHYLACT, archbishop of the chief city of Bulgaria, wrote Commentaries upon the four gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and St. Paul's fourteen epistles. He is spoken of by Cave as flourishing about the year 1077, by

tam perplexo scriptum est, ut vix intelligi possit. Aliquot etiam in locis vitiatum videtur. Ipsum tamen pro facultate meå Latine interpretari studui. Bibl. Coisl. p. 277.

V

Εκ των Οικεμενίω τῳ μακαριῳ επισκοπῳ Τρικκης Θεσσαλίας Θεοφιλώς πεπονημένων εις την Αποκαλυψιν Ιωαννε το θεολογε, συνοψις σχολική, κ. λ. Ib. p. 277. F. P. 277. F. et. 278.

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* See before in this work, vol. ii. p. 124, Andrew cited from Prolog. ad Apoc. p. 3. B. ad Calc. T. viii. Opp. S. Chrysostom. Ed. Morell. y Vid. Areth. ap. Ecumen. T. ii. p. 640.

H. L. T. ii. p. 153.

Fabricius about 1070. His Commentaries are collected out of Chrysostom and others, with observations likewise, undoubtedly, of his own.

2. Beside these works, he is said to have written likewise a Commentary upon the twelve lesser prophets, mentioned by Cave in the place before referred to, and more particularly by Fabricius: but I have not seen it; and whether it has been yet published I cannot certainly say.

d

3. I proceed directly to take notice of divers things in his Commentaries upon the books of the New Testament.

4. In his preface to St. Matthew's gospel he says, ' that Christ has given us four gospels.' And that there are four evangelists, two of which, Matthew and John, were of the choir of the twelve apostles: the other two, Mark and Luke, were of the number of the Seventy. Mark was a companion and disciple of Peter, Luke of Paul. Matthew first wrote a gospel in the Hebrew language, for the sake of the Hebrew believers, eight years after Christ's ascension; and John, as is said, translated it out of Hebrew into Greek. Mark wrote ten years after our Lord's ascension, having been instructed by Peter; Luke fifteen; and John, the most excellent divine, two and thirty years after our Lord's ascension; for it is said, that when he had outlived them, after their death their three gospels were brought to him, that he might judge whether what they had written was true. Having seen them, he added some things omitted by then and whereas they had not taken notice of the eternal existence of God the Word, he gave an account of his divinity, lest he should be esteemed a mere man ; Matthew discourseth only of his nativity according to the

for

b Bib. Gr. T. vi. p. 284, &c. c Du Pin, Bibl. T. viii. p. 113. R. Simon Hist. Crit. des Comment. du N. T. ch. 28. p. 390, &c. Fabr. Bib. Gr. T. vii. p. 787.

d Theophylacti, Bulgarorum Archiepiscopi, qui circa A. C. 1070 claruit, Commentarios in xii prophetas minores, ex antiquiorum patrum monumentis decerptos, brevi in lucem edendos speramus a C. V. Johanne Henrico Lederbino, Linguarum Orientalium in Academiâ Argentoratensi Professore, qui illos ex Græco codice Bibl. publicæ illius urbis descripsit, et utrâque linguâ vulgaturum recepit. B. Gr. T. vii. p. 765.

e

f

Teσoapa de dedwKev nμiv evayyedia. Pr. in Matt. p. 1. B. Paris. 1631. Τεσσαρες μεν εισιν οἱ ευαγγελισαι τετων οἱ μὲν δυο-ησαν εκ το χορε των δωδεκα· οἱ δε δυο, Μαρκος φημι και Λεκας, εκ των ἑβδομήκοντα, κ. λ. ib. p. 2. D. E. p. 3. A. 8 Θεολογικώτατος.

h According to that account, St. John's gospel was written in the year of our Lord's nativity 65, or thereabout, before the destruction of Jerusalem, and before the siege of that city was begun; which is different from the sentiments of more early writers.

i

αυτος εθεολόγησε

flesh, because he wrote for the Hebrews, who were fully satisfied, when they had been assured that the Christ was born of David and Abraham.'

'Thek

5. The preface to St. Mark is to this purpose: gospel according to Mark was written at Rome, ten years after Christ's ascension, at the request of the believers there : for this Mark was a disciple of Peter, whom he calls his son spiritually. His name was John. He was nephew to Barnabas, and1 was also a companion of Paul.'

m

6. In this same preface he mentions the symbols of the evangelists: but differently from many others. The gospel of John, in the first place, he supposes to be resembled by the face of a lion, the king of beasts, denoting John's preeminence: Matthew's by the face of a man. Mark he compares to an eagle, because he begins with the history of John, who was a prophet; and the gift of prophecy is farsighted. Luke he compares to a calf or ox.

7. In the Commentary upon Acts xii. 12, where John, surnamed Mark, is mentioned, he says, Perhaps this is Mark the evangelist, by whom, as is said, Peter evangelized; for Mark's gospel is said to be Peter's:' and he thinks that opinion probable.

8. In the preface to his Commentary upon St. Luke, Theophylact expresseth himself as if he thought the evangelist, in the introduction, referred to the gospels according to the Egyptians, and according to the twelve. He also says, that from that introduction it appears, Luke was not from the beginning a disciple, but only afterwards; for others were disciples from the beginning, as Peter, and the sons of Zebedee, who delivered' to him the things which he had not seen or heard.

9. This seems to be contrary to what was said in the preface to St. Matthew's gospel, that Mark and Luke were of the number of the seventy; unless he can be understood to mean some things only, even in the more early part of Christ's ministry, about which Luke might be informed by those disciples, who then attended upon the Lord. It is also said, in the argument of Luke's gospel, that he was

* In Marc. ib. p. 189.

m P. 190. A. B.

n

αλλα και Παύλε συνεκδημος. Ταχα όντος ετι Μαρχος ὁ ευαγγελισης.

K. X. In Act. Ap. p. 115. M. Coloniæ. 1568.

• Πολλοι γαρ συνεγραψαν ευαγγελια δηθεν οἷον επι το κατ' Αιγυπτίας, και το επιγραφόμενον των δωδεκα, κ. λ. Pr. in Luc. p. 297. Β. P Ib. p. 297, 298. ώτε φασι τινες, ένα και αυτον γενεσθαι των ἑβδομήκοντα αποςόλων και εκ νεκρών δε αναςαντι τῷ Χρισῳ συναντησαι μετα Κλεοπα.-Γράφει δε προς Θεοφίλον, συγκλητικον οντα και

said to have been one of Christ's seventy apostles, and, after the Lord's resurrection, to have met him with Cleophas. Here likewise he says, that Theophilus, to whom St. Luke wrote, was a man of senatorian rank, and possibly a governor; forasmuch as he calls him most excellent,' the same title which St. Paul useth in his addresses to Felix and Festus.

10. In his comment upon the history of the two disciples whom Jesus met in the way to Emmaus, one of whom is said to be Cleophas, Luke xxiv. 18, Theophylact says, somer have thought the other to be Luke the evangelist, who, out of modesty, declined to mention himself. Here again St. Luke is supposed to have been personally acquainted with the Lord Jesus.

11. In the preface to St. John's gospel, Theophylact says, that John wrote his gospel when he was an exile in Patmos, two and thirty years after Christ's ascension.' He proceeds: John" was beloved above all the disciples, because of his simplicity, and meekness, and mildness, and purity, for he was a virgin; moreover he was related to the Lord. But how can that be? Attend. Joseph, husband of the blessed Mary, had seven children by a former wife; four sons, and three daughters, Martha, [perhaps it should be Mary,] Esther, and Salome, whose son John was; therefore Salome was reckoned our Lord's sister, and John was his nephew' so Theophylact in that place. In another place he says, Joseph had by the widow of his brother Cleophas, who died without issue, six children, four sons, and two daughters, named Mary, who was reckoned daughter of Cleophas according to law, and Salome: and he always supposeth Mary, mother of our Lord, to be the same as Mary the mother of James and Joses, who were Joseph's children by a former wife; as was also Salome, the mother

V

W

αρχοντα ισως το γαρ κρατικος επι των αρχόντων και ἡγεμόνων ελέγετο ώς και ὁ Παυλος φησι προς τον ἡγεμονα Φησον ̇ κρατιτε Φησε. p. 293.

r

P. 539. C.

νησῳ εξόρισος διατελων, κ. λ. p. 554. Β.

8

· ὁ και συνεγραψεν εν Πατμῳ τη

So likewise in the latter part of the Synopsis ascribed to Athanasius, it is said, The gospel according to John was dictated by the holy and beloved apostle, when he was an exile in Patmos, and was afterwards published by him at Ephesus, under the care of Gaius his host, and of the other apostles, of whom Paul says in the epistle to the Romans [xvi. 23.] "Gaius my host, and of the whole church, saluteth you." Ap. Ath. T. ii. p. 202. F.

u P. 554. B. C. D.

W

In Matth. cap. xiii. p. 79. C. D.

Την Μαριαν, ἡ ελεγετο το Κλοπα θυγατηρ κατα τον νομον και την ΣαAwμnv. Ibid. * Vid. in Matth. cap. xxvii. P 178.

C. D. In Marc. cap. xv. p. 286. C. D. in Luc. cap. xxiv. p. 538. D. In Joan. cap. xix. p. 826. C. D.